Hunger
Hunger is now a new feature in Minecraft which can get many people confused, and more likely to die from hunger than from creepers. This is a tutorial to manage your hunger slightly carefully. And questions or suggestions should be reported to the discussion page instantly. More info about Hunger can be found in it's own page.
Food
As of version 1.8, food is part of what you will need to survive. Food does not heal you directly, it only fills your hunger bar, which, when it is full, allow time to heal you. However, you will start taking damage if you allow your hunger bar to be completely depleted. Different food item sate your hunger more or less effectively.
Cookies
These are a basic, easy to craft, food item. With 8 created per crafting, these are an easy, on the go, meal. Filling up only half a bar on the hunger bar for each cookie consumed, a single craftings worth heals as much as a Cooked Porkchop. You can use cookies to to fill up your hunger bar when you are not yet very hungry.
Beef/Porkchop
Delicous and nutritious meat, this food item should be easy to get right off the bat. Cows and Pigs roam everywhere. When cooked, the meat heals 4 units on the hunger bar. However, in already-generated chunks, animals spawn only rarely. Thus, meat should be used as food only occasionally. We suggest that you start farming after the first few days.
Apple
A nice, delicate treat for any MineCraftier, this apple is actually pretty rare to find, although in future versions this will be unvalid, because apples will drop from leafblocks. Worse yet, a regular apple heals only 2 bars. We suggest that you wait to craft a Golden Apple as this gives heals any level of hunger. Or, get a mod that makes apples easier to find.
Bread
One of the most eaten objects in MineCraft, Bread can be an everyday meal to anyone. Easy to make, and it heals 2.5 bars, 4 should fill your hunger easily. Of course, tall grass needs to be harvested in order to obtain the seeds necessary for farming wheat, and well, we feel sorry for you if you spawn in an endless desert.
Cake
We assure you, Cake is probably the most desired food in MineCraft. Many Multiplayer Greifers take the cake or just destroy it. It's quite a pain to craft, but it heals 6 units on the health bar, so two batches should fill up you quite nicely. It also has the ability to be eaten without pausing.
Fish
If you have access to water, fishing is a great way to gather food, and after it is cooked it heals 3 units on the hunger bar. After creating a fishing rod, a 4 block deep patch of water will provide an endless supply of food. Fish also has the benefit of being able to be harvested inside of your shelter by digging a hole and using a bucket to fill it with water.
Mushroom Stew
A messy and sometimes poisonous meal thanks to the red mushroom, nevertheless, Mushroom Stew is quite affordable and hunger staving meal. It heals 4 units, like Steak, but it is quicker and less brutal to obtain. Mushroom Farms should be made in order to husband mushrooms wisely. Mushroom stew does not stack.
Melon
An easy fruit, the Melon slice can be obtained by harvesting a Melon Block. Each slice heals 1 unit, but you should get a lot of them through Melon Farming. However, Abandoned Mineshafts hold the only way to obtain them, so keep a bucket of Milk with you when you're near a lot of Cobwebs.